If youâ€™re thinking of taking a trip to Lake Lansing this summer you may want to pack your Ouija board. Over 100 years ago the land on the south side of Lake Lansing was the site of a spiritualist retreat named Haslett Park. Attempting to contact the spirits of the deceased was a popular past time for summer campers.

The camp was was founded in 1882 by the leader of the local spiritualist group, James Haslett. The spiritualists believed that it was possible to contact the spirit world to receive guidance on earthly issues and knowledge about the afterlife. This was done through special individuals known as mediums. The mediums adopted alternate names, such as Doctor or Mistress, when they worked and each medium relied on the help of a spirit guide or â€œcontrolâ€ to relay messages from the dead. In 1890 a special house was built on the camp grounds for the mediums. It provided rooms where the mediums could stay while at the camp and where classes on developing their abilities could be taught. In 1889 thirty-one people had registered for such a class organized by Frank C. Algerton. The participants came from as far away as Syracuse, Nebraska.

By 1896 the camp facilities included an auditorium capable of holding 2,000 people, a dining hall which could serve 250, and a large stable. The camp offered numerous amenities for the visitors including daily grocery delivery and an entertainment program was provided on Saturday evenings. Campers could rent a tent or bring their own. It was not unusual for there to be over 100 tents pitched on the grounds during the annual summer meeting.

In addition to its public face Haslett Park also had a secret society. It was established in 1888 and called the Haslett Park Club Circle. The purpose of this group was â€œfor the spiritual advancement of allâ€ as well as the promotion of the yearly spiritualist meetings at Haslett Park. The circle consisted of eight men and women from the Lansing area. This included Mrs. M. J. Mead, a medium from Mason who used the name Lady and was assisted by spirits named Yunundeo and Yokie.

There had been hopes that Haslett Park would become the national headquarters of the spiritualist movement. Attendance, however, gradually petered out after the death of James Haslett in 1891. The site was eventually abandoned and later turned into an amusement park.

You can learn more about the Haslett Park and Mead family by visiting the Local History Collection at the Capital Area District Library.
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This selection was produced by Sarah Hegge. Sarah is currently a graduate student at the University of Michigan working on a Masters of Information with a specialization of Archives and Records Management. She has just completed a term of indentured servitude as the 2010 Local History Intern at the Capital Area District Library.

Historian, writer and research consultant David Votta has worked as History Librarian & Archivist for the Capital Area District Library since 2004. Previous to CADL he was employed at the Detroit Institute of Arts Research Library/Archives and as a freelance reporter for NPR affiliate WDET in Detroit. He has studied at the Rare Book School at the University of Virginia and currently serves on more boards and commissions than he would like to think about.

One response to “Lost Lansing: Spiritualist Camp in Haslett”

I have a booklet, HASLETT PARK, Camp Association…Fourteenth Annual Meeting, July 30 to August 31, 1896. It appears to be original but the condition leads me to wonder if it is a reproduction, although there is no reproduction printing information on it. Are you familiar with this booklet? Thank you for any information you can supply.